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Two leading health systems join Fairview to create national specialty pharmacy network

Dec. 9, 2013Fairview Pharmacy Services has spearheaded the expansion of Excelera Corp., a national network of health system and academic health center-based specialty pharmacies created to better serve patients taking complicated and costly medications to treat a range of conditions.

In 2012, Fairview Pharmacy Services launched Excelera with the goal of enabling member organizations to gain access to specialty drugs and, as a result, provide greater continuity of care for patients with complex conditions—from cystic fibrosis to HIV/AIDS to solid organ transplant. Now, Excelera is growing through the addition of several new network members.

“Excelera supports exceptional treatment for patients with chronic and acute illnesses by improving access to specialty pharmacy services,” says Dan Fromm, Fairview senior vice president and chief financial officer. “Specialty pharmaceuticals are expensive drugs that may require special handing, special administration and often treat the most ill and clinically complex patients.”

“By establishing best-practice care protocols and managing specialty pharmaceuticals at the point of care, we believe we can positively impact clinical outcomes and the experience of our patients and caregivers,” says Fromm.

Benefits of integrating specialty pharmacy into care teamSpecialty pharmacy is an increasingly important factor in the care, cost and clinical outcomes of patients with chronic conditions requiring complex and expensive medications.

Most health plans now require patients to obtain specialty drugs from an outside specialty pharmacy that has no direct relationship with the patient. The health system does not have control as to when the patient initiates therapy and is not able to manage or monitor it. As a result, health systems and payers may incur higher medical costs, lower patient satisfaction, and suboptimal health outcomes as care plans are not fulfilled as intended. Excelera seeks to change this.

Patients of health systems in the Excelera network will benefit by working with a specialty pharmacy that is part of their care team and knows the details of their care plan.

This coordinated approach helps ensure that, as a care team, we:

Provide consistent information to patients about the medications they are taking and when to take them

Adjust the prescribed medication as needed

Prevent delays in the start of drug therapy

Avoid interruptions in drug therapy

“Fairview is excited about the opportunities that Excelera brings not only to our patients and care teams here in Minnesota, but also to health systems across the country that are joining the Excelera network,” says Bob Beacher, vice president of shared clinical services and president of Fairview Pharmacy Services.

“Excelera is leading the nation in providing integrated specialty pharmacy care.”